Footsteps in the sand
by HeatherMason
Summary: I never thought of the way I would die, not now. Not after everything that had happened. This battle I was in now was mine and mine alone.. and I knew deep down.. that I was going to lose..    JXB, Drama, angst, torment. Sequel to "The Force of Gravity"
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is the beginning of the sequel of "The force of gravity" There is angst in the later chapters along with some drama, some funny parts will come I promise but I want to be serious with this story. I've always been intrigued by a certain concept and was wondering if it were ever possible. I figured that if a human could fall in love with a vampire and in SM's world that a half vampire-half human could be loved by a werewolf/ shape shifter, that in some crazy world inside our imagination, that this concept could indeed be possible. So welcome to "Footsteps in the sand"**

Epilogue:

**Bella POV**

_If I only could make a deal with God and get him to swap our places_

_be running up that road _

_be running up that hill_

_be running up that building_

_If I only could..._

I've never given much thought of the way I would die, not now. Not after everything that had happened in my past. Every battle that I had been in, I was surrounded by people that I loved to do the fighting for me. It was because of my weakness of being only human. The battle that was going on now, showed just how fragile a human life really was. There was a new battle and it was inside me. No one else could fight this battle but me and I already knew deep down... that I was going to lose...


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hello ALL! Well here is the start of the next part of Jacob and Bella's life. This story is either going to make you love me or hate me for it. So far my friends are mad at me lol. But I hope you all give it a chance and enjoy it as much as I am typing it. :) Reviews are always appreciated and loved!**

Chapter 1:

"Bells?" I heard a voice as I sat up in bed, holding my head for the second night this week. I turned to find Jacob awake sitting up next to me. "Are you alright?" In the moonlight coming from the window, I could see His eyebrows were scrunched together and his face was full of concern. I couldn't help but try to give him a half smile seeing him now. He had become my Jacob. The one with the black long hair and personality that could heal any emotional wound and cheer me up from any bad day.

"Yeah, just another migraine." I said wincing. My head was throbbing. I was lucky my eyes could even focus in the darkness at all. I heard the bed creak as Jacob got up. Within a few minutes he was back, standing next to me on my side of the bed.

"Here." He said handing me a glass of water and two gel caplets.

"My hero." I said popping the two caplets into my mouth and gulping down the water to wash them down.

"Hopefully that helps." He said, getting back into bed. He wrapped his arm around my side and pulled me to him, where I rested my head on his chest. Although my head was pounding, the steady beat of his heart was always going to soothe me.

"I just wish these headaches would go away." I sighed, trying to relax.

"Maybe you should see a doctor about it Bells. You seem to have had them a lot lately." He said, his voice giving his concern.

"It might just be stress related. I have been working a lot of hours at work." I said shifting to get comfortable against Jacob's chest.

"Maybe you should take some days off than always checking in on the store." Jacob chuckled. "I'm starting to think Emily sees our kids some days more than we do." I grimaced at that thought.

"You're right. I'm supposed to be off tomorrow, I think I'm going to just stay home with Ethan and Lexi." I said.

"Sam was taking Emily and little Levi to first beach tomorrow for a picnic. He was asking me earlier if we wanted to go." He hinted.

"Well, maybe we should go then." I said. He kissed the top of my head. I tossed the covers off of me and sat up for a moment.

"I'll be back in a minute." I said, walking outside of the bedroom to the hallway to the bathroom. I had to get used to the lay out of the house we had just gotten a few months ago. After being at the apartment for so long, I always wanted to turn into where the walk in closet was for the bathroom. The main bathroom was next to our bedroom. A second, smaller bathroom was farther down the hall.

This house seemed a lot bigger space-wise than what we really needed. But, the gigantic 3 door steel framed garage, and the big yard for our little twins to play in was a big factor for buying this house. It was a bit farther away from La Push and Charlie and Sue's home than we liked, but it was worth the extra twenty minute commute for Jacob to have his working space with the cars he always worked on. We were in talks with Paul and Embry to save up for Jacob to start his own real business of fixing cars. We had saved a great deal of money thanks to Alice's insistence on helping us with the down payment for this house.

Sometimes I wondered what I would do without the Cullens. To my surprise through everything that had happened in the past between the wolf pack and the Cullens, Jacob at least tolerated them being almost an extension to my family. The Cullens visited normally for a few weeks every year from Alaska. They stayed in their old house, making it easy to come and go as they pleased. My children loved their Uncle Jasper and Emmett and aunt Alice and Rosalie. Rosalie in particular seemed to warm up to me more after Lexi and Ethan were born. Edward had gone off on his own for a while, staying with the Denali's for quite some time. I hadn't seen him since he had left here. Alice tried to coax him into coming to visit with them a few times, but I realized maybe to Edward it was painful to see me being so happy with someone else, so I just let it be. I only asked Alice on occasion how he had been. Lexi and Ethan loved Carlisle and Esme, calling them pappy and mammy. They counted as real grandparents to them. My children were obviously spoiled beyond recognition. Between Billy, who was Paw paw, and the three sets of grandparents on my side, including the Cullens.

As I entered the bathroom and shut on the light, I checked my face in the mirror. It was obvious I was getting run down from working so much at the store. I looked tired, although I had gone to bed at a decent time. After I washed my hands, I wiped my face with a damp washcloth hoping that it would help me feel a bit better. I then walked down the hall into Lexi's bedroom. I creaked open the door and saw Lexi sleeping peacefully through the glow of the night light she had next to her bed. Her long black hair spread across the pillow her head rested on. Her arms were wrapped tightly around the small stuffed bunny that Lexi had named Sherman. It was a gift that my mother had given her last year for her fifth birthday. The stuffed turtle that my mother gave Ethan last year for his fifth birthday was most likely tucked under his arm as well. When I went across from Lexi's and peered into Ethan's I couldn't help but smirk a smile seeing that I had been right. I saw the green shell of what Ethan had named it Howard, tucked under his arm. They both looked so peaceful when they slept. I had to laugh to myself thinking how Rosalie had been right so many years ago about wanting children. When Lexi and Ethan were born, I fell in love with them immediately. Jacob I adored even more with the gift of two little babies he had given me. Our life was perfect here in this house, it put me at ease as I walked back into my bedroom. Jacob was sitting up in bed, waiting for me.

"What took you so long? I thought you got lost in the house."He chuckled pulling me close against him.

"I was just checking on the little ones." I said, giving out a sigh and resting my head against his chest again.

"Sleeping like logs huh?" He asked wrapping his arms around me.

"Oh yeah." I said, closing my eyes and yawning. The thumping in my head had finally began to slow, making the headache I had a bit more tolerable now.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

"A bit better. Hopefully when I wake up I'll feel better." I said. I heard Jacob give out a content sigh and wrap his warm arms around me. I felt my consciousness slip as I thought of the past with Jacob.

I replayed in my head a wonderful night this past Summer. All of us had gone to the cabin out on third beach. The canopy of trees were like a blanket over head, holding all the light out of the darkening sky. Jacob took my hand as my other held Lexi's to go into the clearing just ahead of the cabin. As we came through to the clearing the darkened sky was lit up by little flying lights everywhere. Lightning bugs were flying carelessly in the clearing. Lexi jumped up and down excited as did Ethan.

"I wanna catch some!" Said Lexi excitedly. I let Jacob's hand go and crouched down to her height. I held both her hands and looked into her eyes, the beautiful chocolate brown of her father's and mine.

"You remember the rules here, right?" I asked. Lexi nodded her head.

"Stay in the clearing, close to the cabin." I gave her a hug.

"Good girl." I let her hands go and she raced into the middle of the clearing. She jumped up to grab the first lightning bug floating above her. Ethan ran close behind her jumping to try to catch more than his sister. I watched them frolic and play in the darkness with the lightning bugs. The darkness used to bother me, now I welcomed it, knowing that even in the darkness my children were safe.

"Come on Bells." I heard Jacob's voice to the side of me. I turned to see him standing there with his tall stature, his arm outstretched and his hand out to take mine. The fireflies danced around the clearing, giving Jacob's skin a soft russet glow. The moon was looming over head, through the thick clouds that once blocked it's path of moonlight. Jacob had never looked more beautiful than he did in that moment with his body turned to me, our children's laughter in the background and his warmth of my hand in his. We walked through the clearing up the cabin steps and inside. There we turned on the small lamps inside. I stood near the window closest to the front door, watching our children dance around with the fireflies, while trying to catch them. I felt Jacob's warmth behind me before his arms had wrapped around my waist.

"It's so peaceful here." He said. I leaned my body back against him as he kissed the top of my head as we both watched our children.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 2:

**Jacob POV: **

"Jake, over here!" I heard a voice call. It was Emily. She was sitting on a blanket on the beach. It was s a little cool today, a bit brisker than anyone had expected. Luckily Bella had brought Lexi and Ethan's jackets along with her own. I had Ethan holding my hand up until we got near the beach. I let him go as he went sprinting off towards little Levi Uley, watching Lexi right behind him trying to catch up. The kids planted themselves a few feet from us on another blanket, building sand castles with the mud and sand around them.

"If that doesn't bring back memories.." Bella sighed giggling.

"Let's hope they don't end up making mud pies, or we'll have a huge cleanup when we get home." I chuckled, picturing a young Bella covered in mud. Sam, Bella, Emily and I sat down where Emily handed us sandwiches.

"I hope you guys are hungry, I packed sandwiches." Said Emily, opening the cooler that was next to us.

"She thinks she over packed." Chuckled Sam rubbing her shoulders.

"There's no such thing as over packing with three kids and two Quileute men." Bella said.

"You have a point." Emily said quirking her lip.

"Mommy mommy! Look what I found!" Lexi ran up to Bella and opened her hand. She had found a star fish, that must've washed up on shore.

"Wow, you found a starfish." She exclaimed, studying it in our daughter's hand.

"Can I keep it? As a pet?" She asked looking at all of us. Bella giggled.

"A starfish isn't exactly a good pet." She tried to grimace but couldn't watching Lexi.

"Sure it is. You don't have to train it, it can't go far, and it won't bark in the middle of the night." I said. Bella rolled her eyes at me and shook her head.

"Don't encourage her." She said.

"Why don't you let it go home? I bet it's family and friends miss it in the ocean very much." Said Emily.

"That's right, it's mommy and daddy might be worried. They may have a huge ocean wide search in the ocean for it." Bella chimed in. Lexi looked at it for a few more minutes than looked at us.

"Okay, I'll put it in the water." She said obviously sulking.

"Don't worry honey, that starfish will be glad you let it go home." Bella said getting up and taking her hand. She walked with Lexi off towards the shoreline. They stood there near the water for a few moments. I saw Lexi pull her arm back then toss the star fish as far as she humanly could for a five year old into the water. Lexi then ran towards Levi and Ethan and all three of them began to play. I watched as Bella was still standing near the shoreline, staring out into the ocean. I got up and began to walk to her. I was five feet away when she slowly turned to look at me. Something wasn't right, the look on her face looked like something was wrong.

"Ja..." She couldn't finish saying my name the one syllable sounding like a choking sound filled with fear as I ran to her. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head and her legs gave away.

"Bella!" I yelled as she fell into my arms. Her eyes were closed and she wasn't opening them again. She was still breathing but I could only think of getting her to a hospital. I lifted her limp body in my arms and turned. Sam and Emily must've seen what had happened. They were already near me.

"What happened?" Asked Sam.

"I don't know! She just fainted." I said scared. Emily tapped her cheeks, no response.

"I'll get the kids and take them back to our place Jacob, you get her to the hospital." Emily said. I nodded and ran off towards our car. I placed Bella into the passengers side and buckled her in so if she jolted awake she wouldn't hurt herself. I then opened the glove box and pulled my cell phone out. I called 911.

"Nine one one, what's your emergency?" A woman's voice said.

"My wife, she fainted and she's unconscious. She won't wake up." I said, trying to keep myself calm.

"Is she breathing sir?" She asked.

"Yes." I said, exhaling. Thank goodness for that.

"Where is your location sir?" She asked.

"I'm at first beach at La Push. I'm parked on the side of the road on Ocean front drive." I said.

"An emergency vehicle is on it's way. It should be there in about ten minutes." The woman said.

"Thank you." I said, hanging up the phone. I stood next to her, constantly checking that she was still breathing and checking her pulse. I looked at the numbers I had to cycle through and call to let everyone know. I called Renee and Charlie and then I highlighted a number I wasn't used to ever calling.

"Hello?" A bell like tone was on the phone.

"Alice? Something's happened to Bella..."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 3:

J**acob POV**

I was sitting in one of the chairs in the hospital room where Bella was. She was hooked up with all types of tubes and wires to monitor her. The small screen to the side of me was beeping, showing that her heart was beating at a steady pace. Charlie had come and was sitting in the waiting room trying to calm down Renee on his cell phone. A nurse came in and checked the monitors for a moment and wrote something on her clip board that she had in her arms. She must've just gotten out of nursing school, she looked young, probably in her early twenties. Her blonde hair was put up in a bun and her scrubs were that weird off green color that made me think of pea soup.

"Any change?" I asked. She shook her head slowly and grimaced.

"She'll wake up sometime. The doctors think she just blacked out. Their trying to find out why." I had my hands clasped together. A part of me was trying to keep myself from shaking.

"You said she had constant migraines lately, right?" She asked hesitantly, probably trying to make sure she was talking about the right patient. I nodded my head.

"Yeah, she had migraines sometimes three or four times a week, it was making her miserable." I said.

"The doctors are looking into that too. After she wakes up, she may have to stay for tests and some monitoring for a few days. I just wanted to give you a heads up." She said, trying to hide the concern on her face.

"Thank you for the info." I said to her. She shook her head.

"It's no problem, really." She said. She went to the door and hovered for a moment than turned back around to face me.

"Hey, you don't have to stay here all night, or Chief swan for that matter. You both can go home and get some rest. We'll call you if she wakes up or if there is any change." She said. I tried to smirk a smile at her. It was obvious the nurses didn't like people staying over night in the rooms. The town was small and so was the staff here at the hospital, including security. Of course she'd eye me as a threat.

"It's alright, I'll stay with her." I said, looking at Bella. The nurse nodded and walked out of the room. I got up and walked out after I saw her turn down a hallway and walked to the small waiting room a few small hallways down.

Charlie was sitting there, trying not to fall asleep, still in his uniform and in his jacket. His phone was still in his hand. His other hand was propping his head up on the arm of the chair. It was obvious he was sleeping even though it was obvious in that position, he was expecting no one to notice him sleeping. I shook his shoulder as I felt his shoulder jolt under my hand. He turned around reflexively and then gave out a loud sigh.

"Jake, you scared me." He said rubbing his eyes, trying to focus on the television again.

"More like woke you up." I said. His eyes had dropped to the carpet of the floor. I know Charlie was horrible with emotions and it was impossible to not show some sort of fear for his only daughter.

"Charlie, she's gonna be fine." I said lightly tapping his shoulder.

"The nurse talked to me. She said the doctors were saying she just blacked out. She'll probably come around in the next few hours." I said, trying to make him feel better. Charlie gave out a huff than stood up and walked out of the waiting room and into the hallway I followed behind him.

"You sure that's what she said?" He asked, putting his hands on his hips.

"Yeah, they may keep her for a while for some tests and monitoring though." I said, sulking. I guess it was wishful thinking she'd wake up, the doctors would say she was fine and tell her she could go home the next morning.

Charlie gave out a yawn and covered his face trying to hide it.

"Charlie, you've been here all night. I'm going to stay here and keep an eye on her. I'll call you when she wakes up or if there are any changes." I said trying to calm him enough to let him go home. I knew he had a shift tomorrow and he would be exhausted if duty called. He looked at me straight into my eyes, trying to read me.

"First thing? No questions asked?" He asked. I nodded my head.

"Yes sir I'll call you first thing when she wakes up." I made a salute to him and he shook his head.

"You know, there are times as my son in law I either want to hug you or probably shoot you." He said jokingly smacking my shoulder.

"Which one would you want to do now?" I asked curiously, trying to hide the little bit of hysteria in my laugh at his thought of shooting me.

"I really don't know right now. You're such a smart ass sometimes. But I know you get that from Billy." I nodded.

"Like father like son." I said smiling.

"First thing then." He said pointing to me.

"Yes sir." I said. He then turned and walked down the hallway in the direction of the main area so he could leave.

As I headed back to Bella's room, Bella's cellphone had started to vibrate in my pocket. I pulled it out and looked at the number. It was Alice calling back.

"Hey Alice." I said flipping the phone open.

"Any change?" She asked.

"No, not yet." I said, realizing I said it rather glumly.

"My flight goes out in a few hours, I'll be there sometime tomorrow evening." She said, suddenly throwing me off.

"Wait. What? Alice, that's unnecessary. You don't have to go through the trouble of coming here." I said.

"Oh, please Jacob. If anything I need to get out of this place anyway. It gives me an excuse to help, along with seeing my favorite niece and nephew." She said.

"Are you sure it's no trouble? I'd rather have the kids with you right now than over at Emily's all the time. She already has to deal with Levi and he's at that terrible fours stage."

"I thought it was the terrible twos..." She said.

"Yea think of that but with that kid he gets into double the trouble than most do." I said chuckling. I heard Alice give out a small giggle.

"Well, I'll be on my way in a few hours, I'll see you and everyone sometime tomorrow." She said.

"Alright, talk to you later Alice." I said, snapping the phone shut and sticking it back into my pocket.

I walked back into Bella's room and shut the door behind me. I stood there for a moment at the end of her bed, just looking at her. She looked like she was peacefully sleeping, but the constant beeping from the heart monitor reminded me she wasn't in here because of a nap. Something had gone wrong while we were on the beach today. What scared me the most was it came without warning and I had no idea what caused it. It was weird thinking that just a few moments before that we were laughing, trying to convince Lexi to throw a star fish back into the ocean. I felt the phone vibrate in my pocket again and I sighed and pulled it out. It was a text message this time. It was from Emily.

**Kids are sound asleep. Give me a call in the morning and let me know if there are any changes with Bella. **

**Ems**

I shut the phone and walked over to the side of Bella's bed. I was tired of sitting in chairs, my neck was beginning to feel cramped. I shifted my neck from side to side til I felt it loosen up a bit and then I planted myself on the floor, resting my back against the cool steel of Bella's hospital bed. I knew it wasn't much better than the chairs, but at least on the floor I could stretch out a bit. I leaned my head back against the side of Bella's hospital bed and thought of her being awake and happy as I heard the steady beeping from the monitor. I didn't want to fall asleep but I had been so worried all day and it was already getting close to midnight. If there were any changes, I knew that I would be the first one to hear it. I stretched my legs out across the linoleum floor of the hospital room and felt myself falling asleep. My eyes were tired and heavy, causing me to fall asleep faster than I thought I would. I dremt of Bella for I don't know how long. Just how beautiful she looked whenever she walked into a room. She lit up every room that she walked into. She could never take the smile off of my face and the happiness from my heart that she had given me. I prayed silently in my head as I slept that Bella would wake up soon.

I don't know how long I had been out for. But suddenly, I felt something in my hair, running through it, never pulling. With my reflexes, my hand came up and felt purchase on Bella's wrist. Her fingers were running through my hair, like how she soothed Lexi or Ethan to sleep. I slowly looked up, thinking that maybe I was dreaming. As I shifted my body and turned my head, I saw Bella's chocolate eyes on me. All I could do was hold onto her hand and place it against my cheek. I kissed the palm of her hand and held it tenderly in both of my hands.

"Oh Bella.." I said almost choking up. It wasn't like me to get emotional like this, but I was so worried.

She looked down at me from her bed and a small smile began to etch across her face.

"Jacob.." She said, sounding like the most beautiful poem on her lips or the worlds most soothing lullaby. It kept me grounded on the floor, not moving an inch.

"How are you feeling?" I asked, kissing her palm and then nuzzling her wrist.

"Better." She said trying to force a smile that didn't seem to come to her lips too easily now. " I don't know what happened. I just..." She looked down at her hand that was against my cheek.

"Blacked out?" I guessed.

"Yeah." She said. I heard footsteps in the hall, probably a nurse that was meant to check on everyone overnight.

"You gave me a hell of a scare Bella." I whispered.

"I know." Bella said wincing.

"Did Lexi and Ethan...?" She started to ask. I nodded slowly.

"They saw you fall but I caught you before you hit the sand. Emily took them for the night so I could keep an eye on you, make sure you were alright."

"I feel bad I put Emily in such a spot." She grimaced.

"Don't worry about it, Alice will watch them starting sometime late tomorrow."

"Alice?" She asked, obviously sounding surprised.

"I told her what had happened. I couldn't even stop her if I even wanted to, she's already jumped on her plane and is on her way here." I said. I started getting up, still holding Bella's hand in mine.

"I'm going to go get the nurse to do a check up." I said about to turn. Her hand gripped mine tighter and as I turned to look at her, her face turned to worry.

"Bella, you've been out for a good amount of hours, they will probably want to check you out." I said, trying to calm her down.

"Jake. Stay. at least...Just wait a while longer. Please? I just want to be here with just you for now." She said. I shrugged my shoulders.

"Okay, but if anything happens, I'm getting the nurse." I said. She nodded and a smile etched across her face that didn't quite touch her eyes. She was still worried and possibly scared. I was too for that matter, not knowing what had caused her to black out like that so suddenly. As I looked into her brown eyes and leaned down to kiss her forehead, I heard the monitor's beeping become just a bit faster. I pulled a chair up and sat next to her, still holding her hand, intertwining our fingers from time to time. I looked into her eyes and I felt like I could finally breathe knowing that Bella had awoken and hopefully things would go back to how they were again shortly.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 4:

**BPOV**

I wanted to believe that everything was fine, that I had just blacked out. But how I felt inside, it was deeper than just worry or dread. I felt like my body was preparing for something that I wasn't exactly ready for. Maybe I was just scared since I hadn't been in a hospital for a while. Hospitals always made me feel somewhat uneasy and squeamish, especially when there was the smell of disinfectant in the air or the sight of blood. Any time there was ever an injury or accident I always had to plead with the doctors for me to go home. Having Jacob around, I haven't had any major accidents or injuries since even before I was pregnant with Lexi and Ethan. He always took care of me in every way he could. He was the supreme embodiment of a protector in every way for me and for our children. In this hospital bed, I felt uneasy but I was trying to be calm and collected not only for my sake but for Jacob as well.

When I had woken up earlier, I hadn't known how long I had been out for. When I found myself in a hospital bed hooked up to wires for monitoring, I thought it was like every other hospital. Always being too safe than sorry. But when I saw Jacob's eyes, glassy from tears of worry, it scared me. It was the first time I had ever seen him that scared and worried before. We had talked for about an hour. I had felt so guilty to put my family through so much worry. I hoped that Lexi and Ethan were alright, not feeling as worried as I saw in Jacob's eyes, sleeping in their make shift beds at Emily's house. The nurse had found out that I had been awake and had scolded Jacob for not telling anyone, but let it slide after she had checked my blood pressure and my heart rate. Jacob called my dad but he was already away from his desk at the station for an emergency he was called to. We spent the morning talking and watching a bit of television on the TV set that was placed on a shelf on the high wall opposite of us. We ate a bit of breakfast and I became more worried of Jacob as he seemed to fall asleep almost every five minutes in the chair. He had been awake most of the night no doubt, keeping an eye on me for when I would wake up. I let him rest his eyes for a while, and didn't shift around much so he felt content enough to let himself doze off for a while before I had any other visits from the staff here. It was two in the afternoon already and just being in bed made me feel a bit lazy. I decided that if Jacob was going to close his eyes for a while, then I could to. I closed my eyes and figured that I could have twenty winks.

"Bells?" I heard Jacob's voice say. "The nurse is here to give you a check up." I turned my head towards his voice and found myself looking into his eyes. He looked so horribly tired. His hair was in all directions and his eyes were heavy and even with his tan skin had given away some sort of dark puffiness underneath them. I nodded at him, but continued to study his face. He had been awake for way too long. It reminded me of nights when Jacob was on patrol at my house, keeping me safe from Victoria. He was so exhausted running all through the woods, picking up any trace of her, along with making sure I was keeping myself safe as well. I put my hand on his as he looked at me and gave me a faint smirk.

"Jake, you should go home and get some rest." I said.

"I'll go home in a bit." He said. The nurse looked at him and rolled her eyes. It was obvious she was tired of seeing him so much already.

The nurse had put a stethoscope against my chest and had me sit up so she could monitor my breathing and my heartbeat. She took my blood pressure and temperature. Just as the nurse was finishing up I heard a knock at the door.

"Hey kiddo!" It was Charlie.

"Hey dad." I said, happy to see him give a sigh of relief as he saw me.

"You look better." He commented. He then turned towards the nurse. "Is she better?" He asked hesitantly. The nurse nodded her head.

"She seems to be fine, we still have to run some tests though to make sure every-" There was another knock on the door. Emily peered into the door and smiled at Charlie and at the nurse. She then looked in my direction as I waved at her.

"I hope I'm not intruding, but these two kept asking me if they could come see you." She said just as Lexi and Ethan ran into the room.

"Mom!" They yelled, running to me on either side.

"Easy guys! I'm alright." I said, trying to reassure them.

"You gave us all one hell of a scare Isabella." My dad said. I hated when he used my full name, it was obvious he had been worried. Charlie then turned and looked at Jacob.

"Jake, you look like hell." Jacob smirked tiredly towards him.

"Oh, well thanks." He said.

"I really mean it Jake." Charlie said. "You need to get some rest."

"I'll be fine." Jacob said trying to reassure him but failed miserably letting a long yawn escape him.

Both of the children were hugging me tight in both of their grips and I held them as close to me as I could. Emily stood next to Charlie and scowled at Jacob.

"Really Jake, you need your rest. I'm sorry I came by but Levi was throwing a horrible tantrum this morning. I figured that was a sign I should bring them here to see you since they kept asking since breakfast." Jacob smiled at Emily apologetically.

"I 'm sorry you had to have your hands full this morning Ems." He said.

"It's alright. These two weren't the problem. The most they did was ask if I had talked to either of you. Jacob if you want to take them home, I have their car seats in my van." Jacob chuckled.

"I might need you to give us a ride home. My vehicle is still on the side of the road near first beach." Jacob explained. "I kinda jumped into the ambulance right after they put Bella in." I saw Emily smack her own forehead with her open palm and look at us.

"You're right. I completely forgot about that. I'm so scatterbrained..." Jacob chuckled then he suddenly went rigid. I saw Jacob stiffen beside me, even in his tiredness.

"I think we have another visitor coming." Jacob said.

Within moments, there was a small tap on the door that was left ajar. A little frame with pixie hair came into view, peering slightly into the room.

"I'm not interrupting anything am I?" The bell like tone chimed.

"Alice?" Charlie asked in surprise and looked at me and Jacob.

"Aunt Alice!" Lexi yelled and ran to her. She scooped her up in her arms and hugged her.

"Aww my little Lexi! You're getting so big!"

"What about me?" Said Ethan, coming up on her other side.

"You're growing like weeds, both of you!" She then turned and looked at Emily.

"Hey Emily." Alice greeted her as Lexi hugged her arms tightly around Alice's neck. Emily smiled towards Alice.

"H- Hello Alice." Said Emily giving me a look of disbelief that Alice was here.

"What a surprise Alice." Said Charlie looking at me with bewilderment.

"Don't blame Bella, blame this guy." She pointed at Jacob and he smiled sheepishly towards Charlie and Emily. "He's the one that called me and told me about Bella. I couldn't just sit there. Besides, I was due for a visit here to see my favorite little munchkins." She said setting Lexi down and hugging Lexi and Ethan both.

"How are you feeling Bella?" She asked. The nurse stood in front of my bed, blocking her view of me.

"She was getting her check up done. I still have to take a few samples of her blood for testing." The nurse said, obviously annoyed at how cramped the small hospital room had gotten in such a small amount of time.

"Hmph" Alice said, crossing her arms. The nurse stood there unaffected from her body language and walked towards me.

"I'm fine guys. Really." I said, trying to make everyone feel better. Alice put Lexi down and walked towards the side of the bed where Jacob was. We then heard the static and talk from Charlie's radio, which made us all jump. Charlie looked around the room apologetically and turned the volume down to a very low hiss.

"Sorry about that." He said, looking over to the nurse. The nurse was walking to me then, opening up a kit that contained a few vials along with a syringe.

"Well, I think that's my cue to leave the room." Said Alice.

"Don't tell me you get squeamish around blood too." Said Charlie.

"You could say that." Alice said. Jacob and I tried to keep ourselves from chuckling.

"Don't worry I'll hold your hand and keep your attention when the nurse is taking the blood samples." Jacob said, putting his hand to his mouth as another yawn escaped him.

"Jake, I'll be fine. You need to get home and get some sleep." I said squeezing his hand.

"Come on Jake, you've been here since even after I left. You need your rest." Said Charlie.  
"I got some rest in the chair." He said nonchalantly.

"And on the floor." I noted. Jacob gave out a loud sigh. "Jake, please. I'll be fine." He watched my expression, his face was still full of worry. "Really." I said looking him deep into his eyes.

"What about-" He turned towards where Lexi and Ethan were.

"Don't worry. I'll take care of them." Alice said holding both their hands. "Besides, since they've grown since the last time I saw them, I think they are in need of new fall and winter clothes." Jacob grimaced and looked at me. I just shrugged my shoulders.

"She does have a point Jacob." I said. " I doubt they'll fit into most of their fall clothes from last year."

Jacob shook his head at me and then smirked at Alice.

"I guess you get your way Alice." Jacob said. Alice was jumping around for joy and clapping her hands, my children of course followed suit. They all then quieted down. "Just don't come into my house with a hundred bags like last time. It took forever to go through all those clothes." I giggled, thinking of Jacob and I trying to find space for every bit of clothing for both of them that Alice had gotten them last time.

"I'll help you put the kid's car seats in your car Alice." Emily offered.

"Okay." She said, grinning her dazzling grin at Emily.

"I'll give you a ride back to the house Jacob." Said Charlie patting him on his shoulder as he left my side.

"I'd really appreciate that." He said to Charlie, looking towards me in my direction. I mouthed the word go and he nodded and walked out of the room with my father.

"I'll drop the kids off back at the house tonight once we are done shopping."Alice said. "Did you want me to come by later?" She asked looking towards the nurse for permission.

"Sure." I said. Alice and Emily waved with my kids behind them with Alice skipping out into the hallway. The nurse gave out a sigh of relief.

"I'm so sorry about that." I said to the nurse. She gave me a small smile.

"It's alright. I'm just not used to having so many people in this small room before." She said.

"You think this was bad? You should see how packed my house is for thanksgiving and Christmas." I heard the nurse snicker next to me as she pulled the syringe out of the kit.

"I don't pity you one bit." She said trying to keep my mind off of the needle.

"Who were the women that walked in?" She asked.

"Oh, those are two of my best friends, Alice and Emily. Their like sisters to me. Alice and the rest of her family count me as family as well for my children." She looked at me amazed.

"That's a lot of family." She said.

"Yeah it is but I wouldn't have it any other way." I said. The nurse kept talking to me and distracting my eyes from going towards my arm she had the needle in, drawing the blood. I then felt a cotton ball wedged up against my arm.

"Okay all done." She said. I still looked away from her, knowing that she had the small vials in one of her hands.

"Thank you." I said looking towards her face and not looking down. The nurse gave me a reassuring smile.

"Don't mention it. I have a teenage sister that's squeamish with blood too. I had to pick her up from school the other day because she had passed out during her biology class." She said giving out a small chuckle.

"Does she go to Forks high?" I asked curiously.

"Yes she does." She said. I nodded.

"Does she have Mr. Banner?" I asked. She nodded and giggled.

"I take it you had him too?" She asked, instantly moving the vials behind her back so I couldn't see them.

"Yep. I fainted in his class too." I said. The nurse laughed as I looked at her name tag, finding her name to be Julie.

"Umm... Julie?" I asked, hoping not to offend her by calling her name, when I hadn't exactly introduced myself to her. Her smile widened towards me.

"Yes?"

"Err.. Is there any word on when I can go home?" I asked hesitantly, not really having hope of a definite answer.

"They just need to finish the testing from the vials I just took from you. They should have the results sometime tomorrow morning, so I would think early tomorrow hopefully." She said smiling towards me. "Did you want me to ask the doctor to make sure?" She asked warmly.

"If you could please." I said. She smiled and covered the vials in her hand as she walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.

I sat there in silence for a few moments, hoping that everything was alright with me. It was getting late and I knew that there would be a nurse coming in with dinner shortly. I thought of Alice taking my children out for winter and fall clothes and grimaced. I would have to go through their closet and clean it out again to make space for all the stuff that Alice had bought tonight. I sighed and turned the television back on. There was mostly just news on, which I didn't like watching since all it seemed to be was bad news. I quickly flipped through the channels then stopping when I saw Sponge bob Square pants dance on the screen. I knew it was more for my kids but I figured I watched it enough to enjoy it myself. It made me think of the starfish that Lexi had thrown into the water. I couldn't believe how a day at the beach had ended up causing everyone I loved to worry about me. It was just one of those things I guess. It was just a blackout, it wasn't a big deal. I was fine now. Wasn't I?

"Mrs. Black?" I heard someone say peeping into the room. I sat up immediately at the sound of the doctor's voice.

"Yes?" The doctor came in then. He was a lot older and stocky, pudgy around the center. He had short cut salt and pepper hair and some small aging lines around his mouth and eyes.

"I'm Doctor Douglas. I'm the one in charge of you while you're here." He stated walking up to my bed.

"I heard you wanted to know when you could leave?" He asked. I nodded.

"No offense but hospitals always make me a bit uncomfortable." I said. Dr. Douglas chuckled and pulled the clipboard from the base of my bed so he could examine it.

"Well, it looks like your vitals are doing well. Your blood pressure seems alright now. It was a bit low earlier. Your heart rate and respiratory functions seem to be perfectly fine. So, once we are done with the blood tests you will be free to go." He said to me confidently.

"I am concerned however about your constant migraines." He noted. I nodded at him. "How long have you had them?" He asked. I tried to think back to when I began even taking any medicine for a headache.

"A few months ago probably." I answered. "I knew they were stress related because they only came on when I knew I was over worked at my job. But now.." I trailed. "They seem to be a lot more frequent."

"Frequent as in?" He asked, prompting me to answer as he pulled a pen from his white lab coat pocket.

"As in I used to have them once a week at first, now it seems like it's once every two or three days." He began to write something on the paper attached to the clipboard.

"Did you think about going to see a neurologist?" He asked. I shook my head.

"Not really." I answered.

"I know you want to get out of here as soon as possible Mrs. Black and unfortunately, our neurologist isn't here today." He said coming closer to the side of my bed with his chart.

"If you'd like I could talk to him about setting up an appointment sometime within the next week." He said.

"That would be great, thank you." I said, giving him a small smile. He smiled back and nodded.

"No problem." He then exited the room and closed the door behind him.

It felt strange being alone in that room after having at least Jacob at my side for the entire time I'd been awake. I then heard the phone on the small table next to me ring and I felt myself jump. The heart monitor picked up for a moment as I reached for the receiver. I picked it up and put it to my ear.

"Hello?" I said, not sure of who was calling.

"Hey there beautiful." Said the voice I loved hearing.

"Jake aren't you supposed to be resting?" I asked.

"I am resting. I'm laying on our bed. It's no good without you in it."He said giving out a sigh as I heard his body flop against the pillows.

"So you can spring me from here tomorrow." I said.

"Really?" He asked.

"Yup."

"Do I have to bring my tools to spring you? Or is this an actual release from the doctor?"

"Release from the doctor."  
"Well that's still good news. That means you're alright, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so. The Doctor here, Doctor Douglas wants me to set up an appointment with the neurologist here."

"A what?" He asked.

"A neurologist, you know a head doctor?"I said.

"He wants you to see a shrink?" he asked giving out a small chuckle.

"No a real head doctor." I couldn't help but snicker, Jacob was just playing stupid to be a smart ass. He chuckled with me for a moment.

"They want to see if my headaches are really stress related. I have to make an appointment with him sometime later on next week." I stated.

"So it's official that I'm springing you tomorrow then?" He asked again.

"Yes sir." I said.

"I'll be there first thing in the morning Bells." He said.

"Alright, get some rest, I love you." I said.

"I love you too. Bye." He said. We then hung up. I put the receiver back on the phone and decided to flip through some more channels on the television for the moment.

My dinner came shortly after that. It was a small dinner that consisted of a chicken breast, some obviously microwaved string beans and a small red potato but it was good just to have something in my stomach. I then closed my eyes and rested my thoughts for a while, listening to one of the television shows in the background. I then drifted to sleep, hoping that when I woke up it wouldn't be long until I'd be able to go home to be with my family. All I wanted was for things to go back to normal. As I felt myself falling asleep, I thought of times that Jacob and I had shared over the last few years. Thinking of his warm arms around me helped ease me to sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 5:

Alice POV

When I put the kids in their car seats, they looked pretty excited about today's trip. I loved driving fast but keeping these kids safe in my car was always a number one priority whenever they were in my care. I loved Bella to bits and the last thing I wanted to do was have her not trust me with her children.

"Where are we going Aunt Alice?" Asked Lexi. She was so cute, she looked more like her mom every year. She had her nose and eyes. Her hair that was growing past her shoulders in little curls was jet black like the color of Jacob's. Lexi and Ethan had that earthy smell from being around Jacob but had just the same amount of sweetness from Bella that interlaced them both. I almost wished their scent was in a form of a car air freshener.

"We're going to Port Angeles for the rest of the day. I told your mom I was going to get you guys some new clothes." I said. This was the first time that I was in a vehicle with just these two. I was used to having at least Rose with me or at least Jasper.

"Where's Uncle Jasper?" Asked Ethan.

"He's at home." I said.

"Why didn't he come with you?" Lexi asked.

"I left in a bit of a hurry to see your mom. So, I was the only one that came."

"Oh." Said Ethan.

"I wanna listen to music Aunt Alice." Said Lexi.

"Me too." Said Ethan. I smiled and turned on the radio. I flipped through some stations until I found something that made me notice Ethan and Lexi bouncing around in their seats. I turned the volume up just a fraction and we were on our way to Port Angeles.

It took me countless hours, but I found a bunch of new jackets and shirts for Ethan to grow into. He seemed to really like the Alien pajamas that I had found for him.

Lexi had already gone through her small array of night gowns and pajama sets. Ethan was browsing through jeans and t shirts.

"I like that!" Said Ethan excitedly when he saw the long sleeve shirt I was holding up to him. It was a light brown color with a green dinosaur on the front. We then went towards the dressy section. I looked at a few nice sweaters for Ethan along with some dresses with Lexi.

"I really like that dress Aunt Alice!" Said Lexi bouncing up and down as she pulled it off of the rack.

I looked at what she was so excited about and I practically beamed at her.

"Lexi, this is gorgeous!" I said, holding it up. It had normal imperfections to my eye, like every piece of clothing, but it still looked amazing. It was a black dress with a lace ruffled skirt. The lace had a intricate pattern of flowers. There was also a small red rose as a pin for the top of the shoulder piece.

"It is really pretty. You should try it on to make sure it fits." I helped her put it on an when she came out side of the fitting room to look in the mirror, she twirled with delight.

"I really love it Aunt Alice!" She said excitedly. Ethan didn't seem impressed as he was immersed into the game he was playing on his Nintendo DS. She twirled and twirled in front of the mirror. She then turned to me and smiled.

"Can I get it?" She asked pleasantly.

"Of course you can." I said. She jumped around excited and ran back into the fitting room to change into her regular clothes.

"Do you need help?" I asked her near the door of the fitting area she was in.

"No, I'm fine." She said.

"Okay.." I said. "I'll be right here if you need any help." I said standing near the door. I watched Ethan from the door playing his video games. I then felt myself looking through him. I was beginning to have a vision.

It was of Ethan, Lexi was sitting next to him. She was wearing the frilly black dress she had just tried on. Ethan was wearing a small black suit. At first I thought of them being at a wedding seeing everyone dressed up. Then I realized everyone was wearing black. I cringed knowing this was a funeral. I saw Jacob on the side next to Ethan, but to the side of Lexi was Emily. Something was horribly wrong.

I looked towards the casket and noticed pictures surrounded by flowers around the small alter. It was of Bella. I couldn't believe it at all. In my vision I saw myself walking up to the coffin as if I couldn't even believe in this vision as well that Bella was in there. Just as I lifted the lid, all I had to see was her face, pale and beautiful like what funeral homes did to them.

I then felt a warm hand on mine and it took a few moments for me to realize it was Lexi.

"Aunt Alice?" Lexi asked shaking my hand. I shook my head, trying to get the vision to stop but it continued to play over and over in the back of my mind. I gasped suddenly and if I couldn't stand still as a statue I was sure my legs would've buckled and had me on the floor.

Aunt Alice?" Lexi said again. I turned to her and smiled. "I'm hungry." She said.

"Well let's get you guys something to eat." I said, walking out of the fitting room. I took Ethan's hand. We walked to the register and finished our shopping. I then packed all the bags of the kid's clothes into the car.

We walked over to the McDonald's that was on the corner of the street. We went inside and stood in line. When it was our turn we were greeted by a nice young girl, no older than seventeen behind the counter.

"How may I help you today?" Asked the girl.

"Can I get a cheese burger happy meal and a chicken nugget happy meal with orange slices and milk?" The girl smiled at the two that were on each of my hands and rang us up for the food. I carried the tray of food over to the counter as Lexi and Ethan followed right behind me. They sat down and ate their food in silence. They looked over towards the play area that was on the side of the restaurant.

"Aunt Alice can we go play?" Asked Ethan.

"Of course you both can." I said, running my hand through his short black hair. They both ran into the play area and left their shoes in the small cubby holes for their footwear. They then jumped into the ball pit. I watched them laugh and play for a moment before I pulled my cellphone out of my purse. I dialed the number that I desperately needed to call.

"Alice." I heard his velvety voice say my name and it made me feel better. "How was your trip?" Jasper asked.

"I really need you here." I said in the phone.

"What's wrong?" Asked Jasper.

"I saw a vision today."

"What was it Alice?" Jasper sounded worried at my eagerness.

"I was at a funeral." I said.

"Who's funeral was it?" He asked. I could barely find the way to speak to him about what I had seen.

"Alice, who?" He asked again.

"It was Bella..." I said weakly. I heard silence on the phone for a moment. A moment longer than I needed to feel alone.

"Jazz?" I said.

"I'm getting on the next plane there." He said reassuringly.

"Thank you." I said. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"What wouldn't I do for you?" He asked. I smiled at his words. "I'll be there as soon as I can." He said. I then hung up and phone and stared at my screen on my phone for a long moment. I knew from a vision I was already having that Jasper wasn't going to be coming here alone. Everyone was going to be here to help in any way that they could, everyone, except one person. I couldn't help but feel bad. I couldn't deal with what I had just seen with my entire family here. I grimaced going through the small amount of names I had in my phone. I then went down to a highlighted name and pressed the send button and prayed I wasn't making a mistake by doing this. It rang a half a time before it was picked up.

"Alice, what's the occasion for calling dear sister?" His voice made me realize it had been a while since I had spoken with him.

"Edward? We need to talk.."


End file.
